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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
“So it had finally come to kill us. The sickest part was, I’d started to believe we were invincible- that somehow the miracle of our farm might protect us.”
Wren lives in a small town called Hollow’s End; known for their famous bountiful crops of blue melons and rainbow hued wheat. Hollow’s End is successful and tourists travel far and wide to visit the farms up until a blight slowly takes over the farms. Each farm becomes poisoned by the quicksilver mercury blight, including the animals and then coming for the humans soon after. Those infected are gone in the forest during the day but come out at night, looking like a rotting corpse with white eyes. No one knows what they do or what they are doing till then.
Wren is one of the last ones standing but knows that she doesn’t have much time left. Her parents have disappeared with one of their neighbors and she’s left alone at home. With the help of her neighbor and ex-boyfriend Derek, they work together with his family to try to figure out a way of stopping the blight before it’s too late. They unlock many secrets that lead to the town’s past and learn that not everything about their family and ancestors is not as innocent as it appears.
The book is fast paced and wraps up together in an expected ending. In between chapters we get to see an insight of Wren’s past and how life was before it had all changed from the blight. The writing itself is lovely and easy to read at the same time. There is also an eerie sense of unease throughout reading and you can feel that something evil is lurking from beyond the trees and may attack at any moment. The book definitely made me feel transported right into it. Fraistat’s young adult debut is one to check out if you’re interested in small town secrets and plagues. I’m curious to see what she will come up with next!
Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.
https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/what-we-harvest/
Wren lives in a small town called Hollow’s End; known for their famous bountiful crops of blue melons and rainbow hued wheat. Hollow’s End is successful and tourists travel far and wide to visit the farms up until a blight slowly takes over the farms. Each farm becomes poisoned by the quicksilver mercury blight, including the animals and then coming for the humans soon after. Those infected are gone in the forest during the day but come out at night, looking like a rotting corpse with white eyes. No one knows what they do or what they are doing till then.
Wren is one of the last ones standing but knows that she doesn’t have much time left. Her parents have disappeared with one of their neighbors and she’s left alone at home. With the help of her neighbor and ex-boyfriend Derek, they work together with his family to try to figure out a way of stopping the blight before it’s too late. They unlock many secrets that lead to the town’s past and learn that not everything about their family and ancestors is not as innocent as it appears.
The book is fast paced and wraps up together in an expected ending. In between chapters we get to see an insight of Wren’s past and how life was before it had all changed from the blight. The writing itself is lovely and easy to read at the same time. There is also an eerie sense of unease throughout reading and you can feel that something evil is lurking from beyond the trees and may attack at any moment. The book definitely made me feel transported right into it. Fraistat’s young adult debut is one to check out if you’re interested in small town secrets and plagues. I’m curious to see what she will come up with next!
Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.
https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/what-we-harvest/
This was a surprisingly pleasant read! It exceeded my expectations. It was an easy read but had a good solid storyline and a bit of a twist. Will recommend
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book was an amazing debut.
I was hooked from the first line, and the pacing and heart-pounding thrills didn’t stop until the final page. I loved the secrets bubbling to the surface of this town, and how we jumped right in, to the middle of this plague. The characters—and the antagonist, too, honestly—were so likable. Wren is a relatable narrator, and her growth over the course of this terrifying adventure was moving.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this novel. Opinions are my own.
I was hooked from the first line, and the pacing and heart-pounding thrills didn’t stop until the final page. I loved the secrets bubbling to the surface of this town, and how we jumped right in, to the middle of this plague. The characters—and the antagonist, too, honestly—were so likable. Wren is a relatable narrator, and her growth over the course of this terrifying adventure was moving.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this novel. Opinions are my own.
I think coming off an amazing fantasy streak this one fell just a tad short for me. This is completely different from any of the books I’ve been reading lately, with some walking dead vibes. Something that heavily influenced the rating for me was the lack of information in the beginning. It felt like I was just thrown in with zero background information. I would have liked a little more build up in the beginning to give a better sense of what was going on. I think with that this could have been an amazing story.
It was a interesting plot, I was curious to see where the story would lead. The ending did feel a little quick and cheesy. My only major complaints were needing a little more background and for the ending to be a little less rushed. Okay maybe a little more character background too so I could have related to the characters more, that also would have helped. But overall it wasn’t a bad YA and it was definitely a fast paced read.
It was a interesting plot, I was curious to see where the story would lead. The ending did feel a little quick and cheesy. My only major complaints were needing a little more background and for the ending to be a little less rushed. Okay maybe a little more character background too so I could have related to the characters more, that also would have helped. But overall it wasn’t a bad YA and it was definitely a fast paced read.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
This was a surprise for me! It kept up the mystery, pace, and tension through and through. I was engaged from the start. It's also a great choice for those looking for a more subdued romantic B plot. And the characters, even though being 16, made logical, sympathetic decisions.
The beginning was really hard to follow. It’s like the story started in the middle and I was confused. Once everything made sense, it was a good story.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Eerie, immersive, and at times goose-bump inducing, this book was a ride from start to end! It honestly reminded me a little of the writing style of Erin Craig with The House of Salt and Sorrows and Small Favors. There were times in the book where the hair on the back of my neck stood on end! There’s not a lot of books that can do that for me.
I loved the characters in this book and felt that they all had their own distinct personalities. I did feel like all of them were slightly older than what they were described as though - like Wren and Derek were 18 instead of 16 and Claudette and Angie were early 20’s instead of 19. It did not deter me from finishing the book!
I think the reason I gave this book 4 stars is because of the plot armor Wren had. There are 2 instances where I knew she was safe and who she was with was going to end up joining the blighted herd so she could go on. I think it was mostly because this book is written in 1st person so I knew she would be the one who had to carry the story forward. There wasn’t really a time after the midway point of the book where I felt she was in true danger.
Overall, it was a an enjoyable book that I thought ended well. It was marketed to me as a YA book but it did not have the typical YA feel to it. The writing was beautiful and evocative. It’s definitely something I would recommend to someone looking to read a suspenseful novel. As this is Ann Fraistat’s debut novel, I’m interested in reading any future books she publishes!
I loved the characters in this book and felt that they all had their own distinct personalities. I did feel like all of them were slightly older than what they were described as though - like Wren and Derek were 18 instead of 16 and Claudette and Angie were early 20’s instead of 19. It did not deter me from finishing the book!
I think the reason I gave this book 4 stars is because of the plot armor Wren had. There are 2 instances where I knew she was safe and who she was with was going to end up joining the blighted herd so she could go on. I think it was mostly because this book is written in 1st person so I knew she would be the one who had to carry the story forward. There wasn’t really a time after the midway point of the book where I felt she was in true danger.
Overall, it was a an enjoyable book that I thought ended well. It was marketed to me as a YA book but it did not have the typical YA feel to it. The writing was beautiful and evocative. It’s definitely something I would recommend to someone looking to read a suspenseful novel. As this is Ann Fraistat’s debut novel, I’m interested in reading any future books she publishes!
So this was a ton of fun and I didn't want to put it down. I sort of wish the ending had been a bit *more* but I still enjoyed myself! Loved the creepy vibes and the unique take on the zombie genre. Definitely going to read more from this author.